Bwindi Impenetrable National Park is located in southwestern Uganda, and is part of the Bwindi Impenetrable Forest. It is situated along the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) border next to the Virunga National Park and on the edge of the Albertine Rift.
Bwindi was gazetted as a National Park in 1991 and declared a UNESCO Natural World Heritage Site in 1994. It is an amazing piece of land; it survived the last Ice Age (about 15,000 years ago) when most other forests in Africa disappeared.
Composed of 321 km2 (124 sq mi) of both montane and lowland forest, it is accessible only on foot, mostly due to the steepness of the gradients. In the local language (Lukiga), Bwindi actually means ‘impenetrable.’
Importantly, Bwindi is habitat to more than half the world’s population of Mountain Gorillas Gorilla beringei beringei (a subspecies of the Eastern Gorilla), about 400 individuals at last count. A trek through the thick and dark rainforests of Bwindi in search of these great apes definitely ranks among one of the world’s premier wildlife encounters, and is undoubtedly Uganda’s biggest tourism drawcard.
In addition to the endangered and impressive Mountain Gorillas, the incredibly biologically varied park also has almost 350 bird species (including 23 of the 24 Albertine Rift endemic species), 120 mammal species (including various other primate species, in addition to African Elephant and many antelopes), more than 200 butterfly species, 27 species of frogs, more than 1,000 flowering plant species and about 324 species of trees.
The park is also perfect as an add-on to a longer Uganda trip, as many other fantastic tourist attractions are within easy reach. These include Murchison Falls National Park, Queen Elizabeth National Park, Lake Mburo National Park and many others.
Join one of our Uganda Safaris and Tours to experience this wonderful safari destination with us.
